Teamwork Saves Injured Great Egret
Last summer on July 2, Leena McCluney, a birder who was birdwatching at a pond in South Riding, witnessed a Great Egret being attacked by a Snapping Turtle. The egret was able to escape and dragged itself to an interior shore of the pond. Lena called the Wildlife Rescue League helpline and was referred to Billy Rios, a volunteer rescuer. Fortunately, Billy was only 15 minutes away and was able to leave work immediately to help. The egret was in a spot that was not easy to reach, requiring Billy to wade through the pond to retrieve it. The turtle bite had nearly severed the bird’s foot.
WRL transporter, James, met Billy at his office to drive the injured bird to Dr. Burwell in Boyce, VA. Dr. Burwell assessed that the bone was snapped in half. Repairing the break required two surgeries where she removed some of the toes and then reattached the foot. She was still unsure if the egret would regain the use of the foot, but the bird started eating on his own giving her hope that he was a survivor. This made her even more determined to rehabilitate the egret and, after 4 weeks in a splint, the leg was healed. Two weeks later the egret had fully recovered and was able to be released.
The release turned out to be not as easy as returning the bird to the pond where he was found because there were no egrets left there. Great Egrets migrate south in small flocks, so he needed to be released where there were still other egrets to travel with. Lena reached out to her fellow birders to find a location and discovered there were still Great Egrets in Algonkian Regional Park in Sterling. On August 11 Dr. Burwell released the egret and Lena was there to take this beautiful release photo!
Upon hearing of the egret’s release Billy responded, “This is remarkable! I was certain this bird was a euthanasia on arrival”.
Equally remarkable is the team work of wildlife lovers and volunteers that allowed this beautiful bird the chance to survive; a citizen who called the WRL helpline, a helpline volunteer providing a rescuer referral, an experienced, brave rescuer who responded immediately, a transporter quickly getting the animal to a wildlife veterinarian, the amazing skills of a wildlife veterinarian, and a community of bird lovers who helped this amazing survivor find a new home before starting his journey south.
